Amid the ongoing talks between Iran and the United States, President Donald Trump said on Thursday that American forces carried out strikes on Iran for three consecutive nights in response to the attacks on commercial shipping. During the attacks, Trump claimed that US forces repeatedly destroyed Iranian radar systems and even escorted commercial oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.
In an interview with CNBC on Thursday, the American president attempted to defend his decision to go to war against Iran. "We blew up Iran's radar; they had no radar, they still don't. We blew it up again the other night. They had a nice new radar; they were all set to go, and we blew it up last week. They have to start all over again for a third time," Trump told the American news outlet.
When asked whether the US was prepared for further action, Trump replied: "We have all the assets." The American leader went on to describe the US naval blockade as a "wall of steel." "I did a blockade that was essentially not a blockade; it was a wall of steel. We have the great Navy, the greatest navy in the world. These guys are unbelievable. Not one ship got through to Iran," he said.
Trump claimed that Iran's economy is in shambles following the war. "They have 300 per cent inflation, they're making no money," Trump told CNBC. He added that the US hoped to eventually export food commodities to Iran.
Trump rejects Iran's strong position
Trump went on to reject media reports that Iran was in a stronger position despite the conflict having battered the country's economy. He repeated the looming food crisis in the West Asian nation. "They need food. They need corn, wheat, and soybeans, and we're going to have exclusively our American farmers provide that. Assuming we get to the position where we should get to," Trump averred.
He went on to call out The New York Times for reporting that Iran is in a stronger position in the war. "The New York Times said the other day that Iran is in a better position now than it was four months ago," he said.
"I said, wait a minute, their military is gone. Their inflation is up to 300 per cent from 5 per cent. Their leaders are gone. Their second row of leaders is gone. Some of their third row of leaders are gone. Their generals are mostly wiped out," the American leader added.
Trump noted that his administration has constantly avoided closing the Strait of Hormuz because of the impact it would have had on global markets. "If I want to be the tough guy and close up the Strait for the next few years, where 20 per cent or 21 per cent of the oil never comes out, and you can't get oil anymore, oil will be USD 350 a barrel, and there'll be a depression," he remarked.
Instead, he said that the US Navy quietly escorted tankers through the southern approach to the Strait. "Every night, we were taking ships out through the South, which is the furthest point from where they have their little weapons, and they were going along the coast with no lights for a month and a half," he said.
"We had one night where we took 22 ships out. That's a lot of oil. Our Navy took them out. We escorted them out, and nobody knew. The lights were off, everything was off, everything was silent," the American leader furthered. It is pertinent to note that the remarks from Trump came amid ongoing peace talks between Tehran and Washington DC, after both sides agreed to a ceasefire last month.